The following includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention(s). It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art, or material, to the presently described or claimed inventions, or that any publication or document that is specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of power tools and more specifically relates to angle grinder control systems.
2. Description of Related Art
An angle grinder is a handheld power tool used for cutting, grinding and/or polishing. A motor drives the grinder head which is geared usually at a right-angle. On the grinder head is mounted an abrasive disc, cut-off disc, wire wheel or other attachment which is removable and replaceable.
Angle grinders are widely used in metalworking, construction and mechanical repair and are commonly found in shops, garages and auto body repair facilities. Generally disc size and power increase together. Common disc sizes for angle grinders range from four to twelve inches. The larger sized angle grinders generally have more power and are operated by a trigger and include an auxiliary handle for safety and control. The smaller sized angle grinders are generally operated by an on/off switch and generally do not include a handle. One limitation with the smaller size angle grinders is the lack of available handle and trigger operation for improved safety. Some small angle grinders may include a handle and trigger control switch, limiting the use of such an angle grinder to larger grinding tasks. There is a need to provide a system to allow a user to removably install a handle and trigger control on a small angle grinder, while still providing the flexibility to remove the handle and trigger. Therefore a suitable solution is desired.
Several attempts have been made to solve the above-mentioned problems such as those found in U.S. and foreign Pat. and Pub. Nos. CN 203,045,478 to Zhang, CN 104,117,892, CN 202,411,995 to Haodong, DE 19,707,215 to Ogawa et al., DE 19,507,955 to Nieberle et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,602,122 and DE 19,900,404 to Rudolf et al., US 2009/0104861 to Van Der Linde et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,204,744 to Lamprecht et al., U.S. Pat. No. 8,087,977 to Gallagher et al., US 2014/0054146 to Hiller, and US 2014/0158391 to Xin et al. This art is representative of power tools. However, none of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the invention as claimed.
Preferably, an angle grinder control system should provide a device to allow a user to removably install a handle and trigger control switch on a small angle grinder, while still providing the flexibility to selectively remove the handle and trigger when desired, yet would operate reliably and be manufactured at a modest expense. Thus, a need exists for a reliable angle grinder control system to avoid the above-mentioned problems.